Throwing dart with fly-apart wings



July 8, 1969 v OPE ETAL 3,454,27

THROWING DART WITH FLY-APART WINGS Filedfeb. 21, 1967 Shet Z 51 2 f4 7, 7 54 i i iii.

- IN VEN TORS Jug) us (oo s 4:

United States Patent 3,454,278 THROWING DART WITH FLY-APART WINGS Julius Cooper, New Hyde Park, and Henry Nemeth, Massapequa, N.Y., assignors to Ideal Toy Corporation, Hollis, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Feb. 21, 1967, Ser. No. 617,599 Int. Cl. A63b 65/02; A63h 27/00 US. Cl. 273106.5 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE It is the primary object of our invention to provide a throwing dart with fly-apart wings, the wings being stored adjacent to the body of the dart during the flight of the dart toward a target and which fly apart to an expanded condition when the dart strikes the target, thereby to amuse and entertain the user thereof.

It is another object of our invention to provide a throwing dart with fly-apart wings of the character described wherein means loosely coupling the wings is provided to retain the wings in their stored condition during flight, said means being responsive to the impact of the dart with a target to thereupon release the wings enabling the wings to spread apart to their expanded state.

It is a further object of our invention to provide a throwing dart with fly-apart wings of the character described which is few in number of parts, simple in structure, capable of being manufactured by mass production techniques and which will provide many hours of amusement to persons playing with the dart.

The above brief description, as well as further objects, features, and advantages of the present invention, will be more fully appreciated by reference to the following detailed description of a presently preferred but nonetheless illustrative embodiment in accordance with the present invention, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of our throwing dart with fly-apart wings, with its wings in their contracted or storage position, the dart being shown in flight and the forward portion of the dart being shown in cross section;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but with the throwing dart rotated axially 90 degrees;

FIG. 3 is a greatly enlarged and fragmentary cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 3---3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a greatly enlarged and fragmentary cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a view of the throwing dart similar to FIG. 1

i but showing the dart at the instant it has impacted a flat surface;

FIG. 6 is a view of the throwing dart similar to FIG. 1 but showing the dart attached to the flat surface and illustrating in dash lines the position of the wings shortly after impact and in full lines the fully expanded condition of the wings; and

FIG. 7 is a greatly enlarged and fragmentary view taken substantially along the line 77 of FIG. 5.

3,454,278 Patented July 8, 1969 Referring now in detail to the drawings, the reference numeral 10 denotes a throwing dart with fly-apart wings constructed in accordance with our invention.

The dart 10 includes as a leading member, a conventional suction cup 12 formed typically of rubber. The suction cup includes a flaring mouth 14 defining a cavity 16. When the suction cup strikes any flat surface, the mouth 14 expands radially outwardly and some of the air from the cavity 16 is expelled. (See FIGS. 5 and 6.) Atmospheric air pressure against the external surface of the mouth 14 holds the cup 12 against the flat surface and consequently attaches the remainder of the dart to the fiat surface. Although a suction cup has been described as the leading member of the dart, it is within the scope of our invention to provide a piercing member or a magnetic member as the leading element thereof. The suction cup 12 further includes a rearwardly extending collar 18 which is integral with the mouth 14 and which defines a rearwardly opening cylindrical bore 20.

The throwing dart 10 also includes a central elongated body 22 which is coaxial with the front to back axis of symmetry of the dart 10. The body includes a forwardly extending head 24 which is received within the bore 20 of the suction cup 12 and which carries four circumferentially spaced radially outwardly protruding prongs 2-6 which retain the head within the bore.

The body 22 further includes a rearwardly extending and rearwardly tapering rib 28. The rib 28 extends only a portion of the way to the rear of the dart. The rib 28 has a forward shoulder 30 which abuts the rear surface of the collar 18 of the suction cup 12.

The body 22 further includes a large single fin 32 which is also planar and which lies in a plane degrees axially rotated from the plane of the rib 28. The fin is best seen in FIG. 2 and includes a forward outwardly convex portion 32a and a larger rearward outwardly convex portion 32b. The fin extends completely to the end of the dart 10, and the end of the fin constitutes the terminus of the dart. The fin 32 also has a forward shoulder 34 which abuts the rear surface of the collar 18 of the suction cup 12. It will be appreciated that the surfaces of the rib 28 and fin 32 guide the dart during its passage in air from the hands of a thrower until it impacts any fiat surface.

An annular washer 36 circumscribes the collar 18 and frictionally grips the same. Said washer gives desirable additional weight to the leading end of the dart 10.

The dart 10 further includes a plurality of and most desirably a pair of fiy-apart wings, and specifically, a first wing 38 and a second wing 40. The wings are substantially planar and lie substantially in the same plane, on opposite sides of the fin 32. The wings 38, 40 are mirror images of one another and each includes an outward convex edge and an inward linear edge. The surfaces of thewings 38, 40 also guide the dart during its flight.

Means pivots the wings 38, 40 on the body of the dart between an initial contracted or storage position, said position being illustrated in FIG. 1, and a final expanded position, said position being illustrated in full lines in FIG. 6. Said means comprises a pair of relatively thin and rearwardly tapering mirror-image strips, a first strip 42 and a second strip 44. Each of the strips 42, 44, pivotly joins a different wing 38, 40 to a different opposed side of the body 22. Each strip has one end, respectively 46, 48, joined to the body and extending generally at a right angle thereto, a middle bight portion, respectively 50, 52, which makes a rearward turn and another end 54, 56 which is fixed to its respective wing. The strips 42, 44 due to their thinness and their resiliency enable the wings to pivot with respect to the body between a position distant from one another and distant from the body 22 of the dart (the expanded position of the wings, shown in full lines in FIG. 6) and a position adjacent one another and adjacent the body 22 (the contracted position of the wings, shown in FIG. 1). The wings rotate about parallel spaced axes perpendicular to their planar surfaces and passing through the bight portions 50, 52 of the strips.

In a desirable form of the present invention, the wings 38, 40, the fin 32 and the rib 28 are molded in one piece from any conventional tough yet resilient synthetic plastic resin.

Means biases the wings away from one another and toward their expanded condition. Said means comprises the strips 42, 44 which, in their as molded position, hold the wings in the position shown in full lines in FIG. 6. When the wings are in their contracted storage position, as shown in FIG. 1, said strips bias the wings away from one another and away from the body to their expanded position. The strips, as will be explained subsequently in greater detail, due to their resiliency, also enable the wings to shift to a limited degree forwardly and rearwardly, that is, axially, with respect to the body of the dart.

Means loosely couples the wings in their contracted position and is responsive to impact of the dart with a fiat surface to release the wings to enable them to spread to their expanded position. Said means comprises coupling members carried by both the wings 38, 40 and the body 22. The coupling members include a pair of like radially inwardly protruding tabs 58, 60, the tab 58 being integral with the wing 38 and the tab 60 being integral with the wing 40. The tabs are mirror-images of one another and each includes a forward rearwardly tapering edge 62 and a rear rearwardly tapering edge 64. As will be evident shortly, both of the forward tapering edges 62 constitute camming surfaces. Further, each of the tabs 58, 60 carries an outwardly projecting nib, the tab 58 carrying the nib 66 and the tab carrying the nib 68. The nibs protrude away from one another from opposed surfaces of the tabs.

It was previously stated that the wings 38, 40 and the body 22 carry coupling members. The tabs 58, 60 constitute the coupling members carried by the wings. The coupling member carried by the body 22 constitutes a rearward portion 70 of the fin 32 which defines a through slot 72, the slot being best seen in FIG. 7. The slot 72 is trapezoidal in outline and is defined by a front wall 74, a rear wall 76 whose edge is parallel with the edge of the front wall but of shorter length, and a pair of side walls 78, 80. The slot 72 is situated centrally along the axis of symmetry of the fin 32 and is so located on said fin that when the wings 38, 40 are adjacent the body 22 of the dart, the tabs 58, 60 are positioned to protrude through said slot. Moreover, the front wall 74 of the slot is of a sufficient width that the tabs 58, 60, including their nibs 66, 68, can pass through the slot (see FIG. 7).

Referring now to the operation of our throwing dart, the same is illustrated in its condition during flight in FIGS. 1 and 2, and it will be noted that the wings 38, 40 are relatively closely adjacent to the body and the tabs 58, -60 of the wings each protrudes through the slot, one tab protruding through one side of the slot and the other tab protruding through the other side of the slot. The wings are retained in this contracted position since the width of the tabs from the outside surface of one nib to the outside surface of the other nib is slightly greater than the width of the slot near the rear wall 76 and the strips 42, 44 position their respective wings so that said tabs and nibs are adjacent the rear end of said slot so that the tabs cannot move out of the slot.

When the dart is aimed at a target and thrown so that its suction cup strikes any flat surface S, this impact will abruptly halt the forward movement of the suction cup and thus abruptly stop forward movement of the remainder of the dart. However, the wings due to their own inertia will attempt to continue moving forward. Since the strips 50, 52 are somewhat resilient, the wings can move forward to a slight extent. By comparing the shape and relative location of the strips 50, 52 in FIG. 5 with the shape and location of the strips in FIG. 1, it will be evident that the strips, especially at their bight portions 50, 52, have bent forward so that the wings and the tabs 58, 60 with their nibs 66, 68 shift forward and the nibs come into transverse alignment with a wider and forward portion of the slot 72. When this occurs (FIG. 7), the nibs are able to pass through the slot. Then, due to the biasing action of the strips 42, 44 urging the wings apart, the wings spread apart to their expanded state.

Still another factor enables the wings 38, 40 to move apart. When the suction cup 12 impacts a fiat surface and as the wings 38, 40 continue to move forward due to the inertia imparted to them, as has been said, the forward tapering edges 62 of the tabs come into contact with the front wall 74 of the slot 72. This position of said front tapering edges 62 when impact is made is illustrated in dash lines in FIG. 5. As said front tapering edges strike the front wall 74 of the slot 72, the tabs are cammed outwardly and are thrust apart. This aids in moving the tabs out of the slot and also aids in pushing the wings apart with a quick motion which is attractive and somewhat startling to the eyesof an observer. When the dart has come to rest with its suction cup 12 attaching it to a surface S, the strips 42, 44 hold the wings in their extended position, as shown in FIG. 6.

The dart can be easily pulled from the surface S and the tabs reinserted through the slot, so that the wings of the dart are retained once more in their contracted position.

A latitude of modification, change and substitution is intended in the foregoing disclosure and in some instances some features of the invention will be employed without a corresponding use of other features. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims be construed broadly and in a manner consistent with the spirit and scope of the invention herein.

What is claimed is:

1. A throwing dart including a central elongated body, means secured to the leading end of the body adapted to attach the dart to a flat surface, a plurality of fly-apart wings, means pivoting the wings on the body for movement between an initial contracted position adjacent the body and an expanded position away from the body, means biasing the wings to their expanded position, and means loosely coupling the wings to retain the wings in their contracted position during flight of the dart and responsive only to impact of the dart with the flat surface to release the wings, whereby when the dart with its wings in contracted position is thrown and impacts against the flat surface, the wings upon impact will fly apart to their expanded position.

2. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 1 wherein the pivoting means mounts the wings for axial movement with respect to the body between a forward and rearward position and holds the wings to their rearward position, and the coupling means includes coupling members carried by the wings and the body, the coupling means joining the coupling members when the wings are in their rearward position and releasing the coupling members when the wings are in their forward position, the wings being shifted to their forward position by their own inertia when the dart impacts against the fiat surface.

3. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 2 wherein the coupling members constitute a tab on each wing and a rearward portion of the body defining a slot of dimensions and location to receive the tabs, the tabs being configured and arranged so that when the wings are held by the pivoting means in their rearward position, the tabs are retained in the slot, and when the wings shift to their forward position upon impact of the dart against a flat surface, the tabs are free to withdraw from the slot by the biasing means urging the wings apart.

4. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 3 wherein the tabs carry nibs to restrain their withdrawal from the slot.

5. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 4 wherein the slot is trapezoidal in shape with the shorter parallel side thereof rearward and the longer parallel side thereof forward, the nibs being of such dimension that they can pass only through the slot near the larger side thereof.

6. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 3 wherein the tabs slope rearwardly, and a forward edge of each tab abuts a front edge of the slot when the wings shift, said abutment camming the wings outwardly and apart.

7. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 3 wherein the pivoting means constitutes a plurality of resilient strips, each strip joining a different wing to the body for pivotal movement about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the body and for movement longitudinally of the body.

8. A throwing dart as set forth in claim 3 wherein the dart includes two wings, each of said wings being planar and pivoting in substantially the same plane away from 2,136,067 11/1938 Witte 46-80 2,274,208 2/1942 Mull 273106.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 592,059 9/1947 Great Britain.

ANTON O. OECHSL'E, Primary Examiner. P. E. SHAPIRO, Assistant Examiner.

, US. Cl. X.R. 

